Charged up with the BMW 330e M-Sport

BMW Group Malaysia, the sole distributor of BMW and MINI cars in Malaysia, has achieved record breaking performance for its BMW iPerformance vehicle in the country.

The company has recorded its best-ever performance for its portfolio of electro-mobility vehicles in the first half of 2017.

Since the introduction of the first BMW hybrid vehicle with eDrive technology — the BMW X5 xDrive 40e, which happened at the end of June 2016 — the German premium carmaker has assembled and delivered over 6200 units of vehicles in the country.

Dashboard of the 330E M-Sport

BMW Group recently announced that the Bavarian carmaker has managed to hit its target of delivering more than 100,000 units of its electrified vehicles worldwide.

“We are the most successful premium hybrid brand in the country with over 50 per cent of our total vehicle deliveries now comprising Hybrid vehicles with eDrive technology, the highest share not only in Malaysia but in Asean and the world.

“This is not only a great achievement for us at BMW butalso for the Malaysian automotive industry as it is a clear proof point of success of the initiatives by the Malaysian Automotive Institute (MAI) to promote Energy Efficient Vehicles (EEV) and new technology for the automotive industry,” said its managing director and chief executive officer Han Sang Yun in a statement.

The BMW ConnectDrive can be controlled by the iDrive controller located near the gear lever.

The BMW 330e has been very successful in the company’s sales performance with more than 60 per cent of the BMW 3 series delivered in the country are of the BMW iPerformance model.

Most of the features available on the BMW 330e Sport Line are found in the M Sport variant. The M Sport variant has the M Aerodynamics bodykit, M Sport suspension package, which lowers the premium sedan by 10mm and the 18-inch M light double-spoke alloy wheels.

The M emblem can be found around the premium hybrid sedan. The dashboard and door panels is finished with blue accent stripes and dark leather. It also has the M multi-function leather steering with paddle shifters and leather sports seats with electric memory function for the driver.

Just like the 330e Sport Line, the M Sport variant is powered by a 2.0-litre TwinPower Turbo four-cylinder engine and an electric motor mated to an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission.

Rear passengers get air-cond vents.

The combustion engine produces 181hp at 5,000 to 6,500rpm and 290Nm of torque at 1,350 to 4,250rpm. It works together with the electric motor that is able to churn out 87hp at 2,500rpm and 250Nm from zero to 2,500rpm. Both the combustion engine and electric motor together can generate up to 252hp and 420Nm of torque.

Depending on the battery’s power percentage, the rear wheel drive premium sedan can operate up to 80kph with its electric motor before the combustion engine kicks in. If switched to the Max eDrive mode, the 330e can achieve 120kph on pure electric power.

BMW claims that the 330e can sprint from zero to 100kph in 6 seconds. It has a top speed of 225kph and has a combined fuel consumption of 2.1 litres of petrol per 100km.

Measuring at 4,633mm in length, 1,811mm in width, 1,429mm in height and a wheel base of 2,810mm. It weighs 1,735kg and has a boot space of 370 litres as well as 41 litres of fuel tank capacity.

The BMW 330e M Sport retails at RM258,800 without insurance but inclusive of six per cent GST. It comes with five years of unlimited mileage warranty, a five-year free maintenance package and a two-year BWM Tyre warranty.

The Drive

The BMW 330e M Sport is a smooth, agile, luxurious and comfortable premium sedan to drive. We drove the premium sedan for over 600km through highways, cities, rough, wavy, potholes filled and damaged road conditions.

What’s most impressive is how the 330e switches from its electric motor to combustion motor smoothly and flawlessly. There is no vibration, or jerkiness felt.

Throughout the whole test drive, the 330e M Sport cabin remained a silent place. There were no signs of wind noise, tyre noise or engine noise during low-speed driving, but there was slight tyre noise when the car was driven above legal speeds. The eight-speed ZF automatic transmission reacts smoothly and switches between gears.

It also absorbs most of the rough and damaged road conditions with only the large potholes felt.

With a fully charged battery, the 330e’s electric motor can run for about 30km. The battery will charge while driving but this depends a lot on driving conditions.

The battery charges via braking. It also charges while driving down a steep downhill.

While cruising on the highway within speed limit, we were able to record 4.0 to 4.9 litres per 100km. After a mixture of city and highway driving, it consumed about 5.4 to 5.8 litres per 100 km. Its odometer registered 7.3 to 9.2 litres per 100 km, after an aggressive maximum acceleration driving.

The car has 370 litres of boot space.

The BMW 330e is timely for Malaysia, with more charging facilities coming up, charging the 330e will be more accessible.